1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a return pad cable connector and, more particularly, to a return pad cable connector having a reusable cable configuration and adapted to removably receive a disposable single use patient return pad.
2. Background of Related Art
Flexible conductive members (i.e., return pads, return electrodes, etc.) are of particular importance in the medical community wherein patients often need to be connected to electrical monitoring or electrical generating equipment. In such applications, flexible conductive members such as return pads or electrodes need to adapt to the shape of the patient's body in order to provide sufficient electrical contact with the surface of the patient's body.
Electrosurgery requires that an electrosurgical generator be connected to at least two electrodes to produce and deliver an electrical potential to a patient's body. For example, in monopolar electrosurgery, the electrodes usually consist of an active electrode applied at the surgical site and a return electrode or pad applied to a non-surgical site on the patient.
Generally, return electrodes are pliable and thus can be flexed or shaped to meet particular application requirements. Return electrodes are usually manufactured to attach with a pressure sensitive adhesive directly to the surface of the patient's body. Return electrodes are therefore designed and manufactured to be form fitting or flexible so as to provide adequate conductive contact with the non-flat surfaces of a patient's body. Typically a conductive adhesive is applied to the surface of the return electrode to hold and secure the return electrode to the patient's body.
The return electrodes need to be electrically connected to the source electrosurgical generator. This connection is usually provided by way of one or more insulated conductive wires which are configured to interface with the electrosurgical generator to complete the electrosurgical circuit. In the past, emphasis was placed on providing a tight physical connection between the conductive wire and the return electrode which could withstand potential disengagement of the conductive wire and return pad during a surgical procedure.
Contemporary wire termination and connection methods usually require that the ends of a wire be stripped of insulation, formed, and assembled to the flexible conductive member with a staple shaped attachment or some other attachable fastener such as a circular terminal and a rivet. The stripping process is highly dependent upon the nature of the insulation of the wire, the strip tooling design, and the tooling setup. Wire stripping problems can result in broken wire strands or wires that cannot be formed or terminated properly in subsequent operations. As can be appreciated, existing terminating and connection manufacturing processes tend to be overly complex and typically require tedious manufacturing steps to assure adequate electrical and mechanical connections. Inadequate electrical connections can result in impedance changes across the tissue which may effect the performance of the overall electrosurgical system.
In addition, for sanitary and medical reasons, after a return electrode (i.e., return pad) has been used in a medical procedure for a particular patient, the return pad is discarded and a new return pad is used for a new medical procedure for either the same or a different patient. Since return pads of the prior art are usually physically coupled to the conductive wire (i.e., hard wired), the conductive portion and generation leads are discarded along with the return pad. Typically, only the return pad needs to be discarded after each medical procedure for sanitary reasons. Disposal of both the return pad and the conductive portion simply increases the costs associated with the medical procedure.
Accordingly, the need exists for a return pad/electrode cable connector which incorporates a disposable return pad which is removably coupled to a reusable conductive portion/connector.